MADISON, Wis. — Welcome to “Knives Out”— Rebecca Kleefisch’s favorite phrase and a weekly roundup of the infighting between the radical Republicans running for Wisconsin governor.

The GOP is locked in a heated and brutal primary for governor, where Rebecca Kleefisch, Kevin Nicholson, Tim Ramthun, and Tim Michels are each trying to prove they are the most divisive candidate in the race. What’s going on in the Republican Party is so outrageous, it’s hard to keep track of all of their blunders — so here is a roundup:

Who Said It?

Can you guess who said the following

This is a slippery slope. In addition to that at what point are we going to be OK marrying inanimate objects? Can I marry this table or this, you know, clock? Can we marry dogs?

Scroll to the end of this newsletter for the answer.

Trump Seems To Have Endorsed?

After months of pandering, leapfrogging to the right, and pilgrimages to Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump may have chosen his candidate in the Wisconsin GOP governor’s primary.

That candidate appears to be none other than Tim Michels.

If it does end up to be Michels, it won’t be much of a surprise considering Michels asked for Trump’s blessing to run, spent talk radio appearances lavishing compliments on Trump, and ran to the right on the 2020 election to impress the twice impeached former president.

This endorsement will make a divisive primary much worse. Whoever wins this race, every Republican running for Governor is too extreme for Wisconsin.

Nicholson Calls For Seven GOP Debates

Kevin Nicholson has challenged his primary opponents to seven debates! One for every year Tim Michels has owned an $8.7 million Manhattan penthouse where he has lived part time.

So far no one has responded to his call other than the host of the conservative talk radio show, Regular Joe — and why would they? It would require the GOP candidates to be on the record on an issue other than the 2020 election, share an actual vision for Wisconsin’s future, and – perhaps most difficult – it would mean Tim Michels would have to stop dodging journalists. ¯_(ツ)_/¯

Ramthun’s New Look

Since timramthun.com curiously goes to trumpytim.com, Tim Ramthun’s team on a post-convention high, rebranded tim-ramthun.com.

That’s too bad — we really do miss all the bright colors. #lettherebelight

“Freedom” and Donald Trump remain central to the motif of the campaign. Although more Ramthun outfit content would be preferable to more  lies about the 2020 election.

Rebecca Kleefisch’s Election Conspiracy Endorsement

Rebecca Kleefisch released an ad this week featuring Racine County Sheriff ​​Christopher Schmaling. In an interview with WSAU Feedback, Kleefisch called him a “hero” for his efforts to try to jail election officials.

Schmaling recommended charges against five members of the Wisconsin Elections Commission for efforts to ensure senior citizens in nursing homes were not disenfranchised amidst COVID restriction. He has promoted conspiracy theories about how he believes election officials “illegally coerced” nursing home residents into voting.

Rebecca Kleefisch claims that she “protected your freedoms” as lieutenant governor. How is interfering with Wisconsinites’ right to vote “protecting freedoms”?

“Who Said It” Answer Revealed

This was Rebecca Kleefisch circa 2010 — and based on recent statements, it appears her views about marriage equality haven’t evolved very much. Her campaign spokesperson recently told the Journal Sentinel that Kleefisch would refuse to raise the Pride flag during Pride Month.

We’d guess Tim Michels agrees with Kleefisch — he has said he doesn’t believe LGBTQ+ people should ‘bring it out of the house’: “When you bring it out of your house and onto the public street, that’s where I differ. I believe in family values. I believe in traditional family values.”

These two and their homophobic statements are extremely out of touch with our state. Wisconsin was the first to pass anti-discrimination protections for the LGBTQ+ community, as well as the first state to elect three openly LGBTQ+ representatives to Congress. Governor Tony Evers joined LGBTQ+ activists this week to raise the Progress Pride Flag at the State Capitol for the first time in history, saying “doing what’s right matters.”

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